President Muhammadu Buhari said he sent back two sitting governors who visited him in Aso Villa to complain about the frequent clashes between herders and farmers within their individual domains.
He stated this in an interview aired on Channels Television on Wednesday night.
Buhari said he sent the two governors back to their states to meet with their traditional leaders.
According to the President, herders and farmers had been co-existing for decades without rancour or conflict. So, he sent the governors back to go ask the local leaders in their communities what went wrong and what caused the breakdown in communication between the herders and the farmers.
He said, “The role of traditional rulers must not be undermined because in their areas they know who is who. So, we have to revert to that system for us to have effective security in the localities.
“For example, there were two governors that came to see me and I don’t mind saying that the governor of Oyo State and one other state.
“The herders were in their forests but were going into the neigbouring farms and eating (up) the crop. I said as far as I know, the farmers and the herders have been co-existing in Nigeria, let them go and ask the local leadership what has gone wrong, why the break in communication between the local leadership and the herders which come on seasonal bases? The routes they follow, the forest they confined themselves to, why are they now extending to the farms of people? I just sent them back.”
